For The Race: Queen Bee
by LittleMewLugia
Summary: The AllSpark Essence is in Sam, but it is beginning to fade and die. As a last-gasp effort, it uses the energy it has left to do what it can to ensure the survival of the Cybertronian race. In doing so, it gives one unsuspecting 'bot an unexpected transformation.
1. Chapter 1

For The Race: Queen Bee.

Summary. The AllSpark Essence is in Sam, but it is beginning to fade and die. As a last-gasp effort, it uses the energy it has left to do what it can to ensure the survival of the Cybertronian race. In doing so, it gives one unsuspecting 'bot an unexpected transformation.

Continuity: Bay Movieverse

Rating: M for safety.

Disclaimer: Transformers never has been and never will be mine. Probably a good thing. It belongs to Hasbro and Paramount.

A/N: "For The Race" was only ever meant to be one story, not a series, but like the AllSpark Essence in these stories, it appears to have a mind of its own ;-) Skyress89, this one's for you.

For The Race: Queen Bee.

Chapter One.

 _It had thought that by jumping into the little organic who had tried first to save it, and then to destroy it, it could avoid being used for destruction by one of its children without perishing, but in the end, it had only prolonged the inevitable._

 _The Cube it had inhabited had also served as a battery and a conduit back to its main energy source, and without that, it was starting to fade. Yes, in the right circumstances, it would generate the energy it needed for a short time, but not in this form, which gradually leaked the energy faster than it could generate it._

 _The AllSpark Essence reflected that this slow death was still a better fate than destroying life instead of creating it. It only regretted that it's children might also die, as they were so scattered._

ooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo

Sam and Bumblebee were sitting in Ratchet's Medbay, discussing things about Cybertron that Sam was interested in, while Bumblebee obliged by showing Sam the holos he had stored of the planet he had called 'home.' As he showed him the weird (to Sam) architecture of the city of Iacon, Sam examined the pinnacled and rounded metal buildings with interest, trying to take his mind off the unpleasant feeling he had inside that something was going to happen.

He couldn't explain the feeling, it was as if something inside him was withering or dying, but that made no sense. He'd had this feeling for a few days now, and was learning to ignore it. It mainly troubled him now if he wasn't keeping his mind occupied with other things. Like just before he went to sleep, and that was a real downer.

Bumblebee, however, had learned to read Sam better than the boy had realised, had noticed he seemed pale and quieter than was usual for him, and quietly commed Ratchet. As the Autobot medic walked through, Sam said "Why are you through here, Ratchet?"

"Well, this _is_ my Medbay, but I'm here right now to see you. Bumblebee is concerned about you."

Sam groaned. "'Bee? Did you have to? I told you, I'm fine!"

"Sam, I am concerned about you, as a friend. There is so much that can go wrong with your kind, and I know you have said you are fine and that it is nothing, but you have been different recently. Please, just to set my mind at rest, would you let Ratchet do a scan of you?"

Sam sighed again: he did wish Bumblebee had not gone through half the Internet looking up about humans, scaring himself with details of diseases Sam was unlikely to be able to even pronounce, let alone come into contact with during his lifetime. He loved having Bumblebee as a friend, but his overprotectiveness could be a bit of a drag sometimes. However, he acquiesced, knowing Bumblebee would just fret about it otherwise, and he didn't want to worry his yellow friend. Anyway, what harm could it do?

"Yeah, sure thing 'Bee," Sam said, and sat still with his eyes closed as Ratchet ran a scanning beam over him,

For the first few minutes, Ratchet checked Sam for infections ranging from those as harmless (if uncomfortable) as the common cold, right through to and including lethal ones like Ebola. Finding nothing worse than a mild case of athlete's foot, he moved on to deficiencies. He found Sam was on the edge of anaemia, and his vitamin levels were lower than he would have preferred, but it was nothing that a multivitamin and iron supplement (or a healthier diet) couldn't fix.

He didn't do a genetic scan of Sam as he had done that before, and planned on having some gene therapies ready by the time any of his predispositions began to affect him later in life. He checked for cancerous cells, found none that Sam's efficient immune system was not dealing with, and, just to reassure Bumblebee, checked the boy for every kind of energy emission he knew of, and that was how he found it.

"Hold still, Sam," Ratchet said, perturbed, and as Bumblebee's head came up and his face swung their way, Ratchet realised he had best give some explanation before the boy or his twitchy guardian assumed something was wrong. First, though, he recalibrated his sensors in case of error, and scanned again. The reading did not change.

"What is it, Ratch?" Sam asked.

"You appear to have AllSpark energy inside you, Sam," Ratchet explained. "It could be residual, you know, left over from Mission City, but Wheeljack has put forward an interesting theory that we can possibly test, with your permission. It's non-invasive, and doesn't require anything except you and Bumblebee, and Bumblebee's sensitivity to the AllSpark."

"What theory is this? And what will this energy do to me?" Sam asked.

"Wheeljack's theory is that the AllSpark may not be gone, as such, but has moved, and he suggested that if we find anyone, or anything, with even a hint of AllSpark energy, a Sensitive hold it in his hands and try to contact it via song."

"We tried with the fragment, Sam, and got some faint echoes, but nothing more," Bumblebee explained.

"I think the greatest likelihood with you is that we won't get even that, as I said, I suspect it's residual, something left over from your contact, but if we check, we can get anything Wheeljack might want to do done before he even finds out about it, and he will find out, Wheeljack has a way of finding things out," Ratchet said. He blew air through his vents in what Sam recognised as exasperation. "Sometimes, I suspect that that crazy inventor of ours has this whole Base bugged. As for what the energy will do to you, the likely answer is, nothing. If it's residual, and dissipating, if it hasn't done anything to you yet, it likely won't."

"And if it's not residual?" Sam asked.

"Let's not borrow trouble if we don't need it. If it turns out to not be residual, we'll work it out, but so far my scans suggest it hasn't done anything measurable to you."

"Okay, so what do we have to do?" Sam asked.

"Bumblebee is a Sensitive, and could sing to the AllSpark while holding you in his hands," Ratchet said. "Would you trust Bumblebee to do this?"

"I've trusted 'Bee with my life, and would again if I needed to," Sam said. "I think I can trust him with me on this."

"Okay, Sam, climb into my hands," Bumblebee said. "I'll sing, like I did at the Hoover Dam, that's how we Sensitives communicated with the AllSpark." Sam looked from Ratchet to Bumblebee, and nodded.

Bumblebee stooped, presenting his interlaced hands to Sam, who climbed into the proffered hands and lay down until he was comfortable. Bumblebee straightened up, checked Sam was okay, and began to sing.

ooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo

 _The AllSpark Essence became aware that one of its Sensitives was trying to contact it. It reached out, sensing a lifeline. The Sensitive was a form it could live in, would not leak as much as the organic form it currently inhabited. It felt the warmth of the Sensitive's Spark, and pulled back a little._

 _To exist in the Sensitive's body would mean removing or absorbing it's creation's Spark, and this, the Essence decided, it would not do. Perhaps it could, when it had strengthened, transfer itself to a new form built for it and give the mech his Spark back, but the idea of taking over like that was abhorrent. The other danger was that another power-hungry mech, or one of the Organics, would again try to take it over and use it for it's own ends, possibly prolonging the war, or being the cause of a new one, a thought that was more abhorrent than the first._

 _No, the Essence decided, it had to allow itself to die, but perhaps it could do something to help it's creations. It could no longer sense all of them, only the closest ones, and they all had one thing in common. It may be that there were still others of the rarer type about, but without knowing, and without knowing if they would meet the ones here, it decided it would like to try and ensure it's creation's continued existence as a race._

 _It sent a query to the Sensitive, for it would not take this action without permission. The Sensitive sent a query for more data, which the Essence gave. The Sensitive paused, and for a moment the Essence thought the Sensitive would refuse, but instead he then gave permission._

 _The Essence used everything it had to make the necessary adjustments, a process that took the remainder of it's energy._

ooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo

Sam appeared to relax even further as Bumblebee began singing, his eyes losing their focus. His lips began to move as if he were silently activated his scans, for, as he had told Sam, he had expected nothing to happen.

His scans told him that the AllSpark energy in Sam was showing activity, the human's heart rate and respiration increasing even as he relaxed further into Bumblebee's hands. Ratchet registered an increase in the AllSpark's activity, as Bumblebee sounded a querying tone, followed seconds later by a musical trill, and then Sam began to sparkle.

As Bumblebee continued to sing, a glowing halo spread from the human he held to also surround the young Autobot scout, outlining him in a soft blue haze. Then the haze rapidly increased in intensity, becoming so bright Ratchet had to use three sets of optic filters to shield against the glare, until he could not see the two figures at the centre of the blue-white light.

Backing up prudently, Ratchet continued watching, hoping to see something, and continuing to scan even though the light seemed to act like a shield around the two, stopping his scans from penetrating. The raw AllSpark energy was too powerful, too turbulent, but it didn't take a genius to work out that something big was taking place.

The glow eventually began to shrink and fade, revealing the figure of Bumblebee, still holding the human boy cradled in his arms. At first, Ratchet could not tell exactly what was different about Bumblebee, as the light still seemed to be blurring his edges. Ratchet focused his scans on Sam, but the boy appeared unharmed, stirring and waking with a confused look upon his face. As Bumblebee turned his head to look at Ratchet, Ratchet stared.

The scout did not appear to be harmed himself by the outpouring of AllSpark energy, and was still recognisably Bumblebee, still yellow, and still had the same round blue optics as before. The scout's face, for the most part, was unchanged, except for the fact that Bumblebee now possessed a mouth, and the head was a slightly different shape.

The doorwings were still there, although they appeared larger, but Ratchet realised this was an optical illusion fostered by the Autobot scout's less bulky and more slender frame. Bumblebee had lost no height, but was less broad, the form still strong looking, but unmistakably...

As Bumblebee gave Ratchet a querying warble, Ratchet's optics widened as his conclusion caught up with his observations, and Ratchet realised that for some reason, the AllSpark appeared to have turned Bumblebee into a femme.


	2. Chapter 2

For The Race: Queen Bee.

Chapter Two.

A/N: Thanks to writer Meowth2 on this site for some suggestions and input I have utilised in this and some of the following chapters.

Thanks also to XRaiderV1 for helping me sort out she insecurities, and puts me things I to perspective.

Breem=About 8 minutes. Orn=about 13 days. Vorn=about 86 years.

'Bee blinked a couple of times, and then, carefully transferring the still-groggy Sam to one arm and hand, stretched out the other arm and the corresponding leg in front of her so she could get a good look at them. Twisting the arm so the hand was palm down, and then palm up, and back again, and pointing and relaxing the foot of the leg, she let out a melodic warble that expressed a mixture of acceptance and surprise.

Sam pushed himself up on the Autobot scout's other arm, and began to sit up, and Bumblebee hurriedly drew her hand and arm back to hover protectively beside him. Wiping an arm and hand over his eyes and face, Sam let out a sigh and a yawn, and then looked up at Bumblebee. He gave a double-take that at another time might have been seen as humorous, before saying "'Bee, is that you? What happened?" His eyes wandered over his yellow Guardian, registering the changes wrought by the AllSpark on Bumblebee's yellow and silver frame, which was in many ways still very familiar, but in other ways so very different.

Bumblebee's mouth moved, but the sound that came out formed no intelligible words. Ratchet moved forwards as he completed his scan, holding out his hand towards Bumblebee.

"Speaking with a mouth when you are not used to having one can be awkward, Bumblebee, let me download some software that will help," he said. Bumblebee nodded, and both Ratchet's and Bumblebee's optics flashed as the medic sent the scout a com. Then Bumblebee tried again.

"Sam?" It looked and sounded a little odd, Bumblebee speaking with her newly-created mouth. Sam reached up to stroke the scout's face reassuringly.

"'Bee? What happened? I mean, I can see the differences, but how, and why?" The young human teen clarified.

"There...was...AllSpark energy," Bumblebee said, experiencing a few difficulties with speech despite the programming, so going slow. "It...it asked to...change me. It...it is...concerned that we...Cyber...Cybertronians...are so...so scattered that with...without it, we might not...survive as a...race." She paused, and Ratchet spoke to reassure her.

"Don't worry, Bumblebee, and don't rush it. I know I gave you software, but sometimes there's a big difference between theory and practice. Sometimes just knowing the theory isn't enough, you need the practical experience, and you will get it, so don't fret."

Bumblebee, who had indeed been feeling frustrated with her broken speech, gave Ratchet a grateful look before speaking again.

"It asked to...change me this way, it did...explain, in...detail, and I...I agreed to...this change."

"So, there _is_ AllSpark energy in Sam, and it was powerful enough to do this to you?" Ratchet asked.

"There was," corrected Bumblebee. "The...energy...essence of the...AllSpark, it could not...exist...like that, in an...un...unfamiliar...organic form. It was...weakening...already. It used it's...remaining...energy to...change me, but now, it is...is...gone." Bumblebee punctuated this with an unexpectedly poignant, mournful whistle.

"Hey, that feeling I had? It's gone," Sam interjected. "Do you think I might have somehow picked up on this, if it was in me?"

"If I can...scan you, Sam...maybe...we can...work it out?" Bumblebee said, stooping to place Sam on Ratchet's work table. Sam stood, stretching his hands slightly out from his side's and standing with his feet apart and his head up, and said, "Okay, I'm as curious as you, go ahead, scan me."

As Sam had not specified that only Bumblebee could scan, even though it was Bumblebee the boy addressed, Ratchet took it as an invitation, and also scanned Sam, after all, he was curious too.

One blue scanning beam and one blue scanning beam, the first belonging to Bumblebee and the second to Ratchet, moved over Sam's body as he stood still compliantly. Bumblebee's turned off after a fairly short time, but Ratchet's played over Sam's form for another half-minute before he had all the readings he wanted and stopped. Bumblebee nodded his head to Ratchet deferentially, and Ratchet let his optics glow a little brighter in thanks for the courtesy before he began speaking.

'Sam, there is still some AllSpark energy registering within you, but it is far less than what it presumably was, and it appears to be dissipating rapidly. By the end of the week I suspect there will be none left within you whatsoever."

"The...Essence...consciousness...of the AllSpark...spoke...conversed with me," Bumblebee said. "It told me it would no...no longer...exist..after it...used it's...remaining...energy to...change me. Based on this, it...makes sense to...assume that what is in Sam is...residual. It is...a sad thing, but it...assured me that this was what it...wanted. It...feared...being...warred over if it...stayed, and it said it would rather...cease...functioning than...allow that to...happen again."

"I notice, Bumblebee, that although your form has been slimmed down, you still look as if you can transform into some version of your Camaro disguise," Ratchet said. "My calculations suggest that you should still have a disguise form, but it might be prudent to make certain. I suggest you try, and if it doesn't work out, we have other vehicles in the courtyard you can scan if need be."

"I guess I didn't think of that, let's find out, hey, 'Bee?" Sam said.

"Yes, I shall," Bumblebee said. She took a couple of steps forward, wavering a little, before she folded down with the familiar set of 5 descending tones into something that, like her new body, was a mix of familiar and different. Bumblebee now looked like a concept Camaro with bespoke modifications, sportier looking curves and aerodynamic venting on the top and sides. Sam whistled in appreciation as his eyes ran over Bumblebee's shiny, almost organically-shaped exterior.

"You...like it? Or should I choose something...different?" She asked.

"No need, Bee, you look great!" Sam said, getting Ratchet to put him on the floor so he could rush over to comfort his suddenly insecure femme friend. Bumblebee backed up and unfolded back into her robot form, picking Sam up and bringing him to her face.

"You really think so?" She asked, and Sam reached up to stroke the smooth metal of her face.

'Definitely!" He said. "My friends'll think I've had a big win on the lottery or something, seeming to change my car twice in as many years, but that's not a problem. I honestly don't really care what you look like, you'll always be my friend, but for what it's worth, I'll be the envy of everyone I know with you looking like that!" Sam said, then noticed Ratchet cock his eyebrow, quite a feat for a metallic being. "Well, anyone human, anyway," he amended.

Heavy footsteps sounded, startling both Sam and Bumblebee, and Ratchet said "I called Prime down, I think he needs to know about this." It was all the warning they got before Optimus rounded the corner, his optics scanning the room. They found Bumblebee, locked in, and stayed there, as did Optimus himself, standing staring at Bumblebee as if riveted to the spot.

A few seconds stretched into a few more, and Sam felt the slight tremor that ran through Bumblebee's frame, slight and only noticeable because he was standing on her, but something must have shown in Bumblebee's optics (or Optimus himself must have realised how awkward the moment had just become) for he took a step back, moved his optics from side to side and blinked before saying to Bumblebee "Scout Bumblebee, a situation report would be appreciated."

Bumblebee bobbed her head in assent before replying.

"By...accident, it was...discovered that the human boy Samuel James Witwicky had a form of AllSpark Energy...registering within him." Sam noticed that Bumblebee seemed to be speaking better, without the slight stammer and less of the pauses that had characterised her earlier speech. "As per...Wheeljack's...suggestion, I held him and sang to him to see if it would...elicit a reaction that suggested it was more than residual," she began to explain.

At that moment, as if summoned by the mention of his name, Wheeljack entered the Medbay at a half-run. Ratchet scowled at him as Bumblebee, startled by the sudden ingress of the inventor, took two steps back.

"What happened?" Wheeljack asked as he, too, spotted Bumblebee, and the changes that had occurred to her frame. "Why wasn't I told earlier?"

"Because it's only happened in the last two breems, and we're concerned about Sam and Bumblebee's welfare, so nobody thought to contact you? Or maybe because, as you have just made obvious by your sudden entry, you found out when we did and so didn't need informing!" Ratchet said.

"Easy, Ratchet, I called him when you told me, I wondered if he might be able to help work out what has happened, why it happened, and what, if anything, needs to be done about it?" Optimus said.

"I can think of one thing I can do right now," Wheeljack said "and that is to short out any listening devices in this room. We don't think the 'Cons have infiltrated the base to plant any, but with the Insecticons back on the scene, we just don't know, so it's best not to take chances." There was an electrical-sounding sizzle as Wheeljack's audio lights glowed brightly for a few seconds, followed by three small but audible popping noises.

"Well, I know one of those was my own data recording device, that's slagged now, but what about the other two?" Ratchet said in concern, heading in the direction that one of the pops had sounded.

"Don't worry, those were mine, I can repair them when I repair yours for you, Ratchet," Wheeljack said cheerfully, ignoring or not noticing the sour look Ratchet threw his way, and the mutter of "you cheeky young slagger" that followed the look.

"Wheeljack, if you could repeat the procedure in all the corridors and rooms here for safety, I would appreciate it," Optimus said. "As you have confirmed you have been listening in, you know what happened, and we can convene later to discuss the why and what to do about it."

"Sure thing, Prime," Wheeljack said, and headed out to do just that. Optimus turned back to Bumblebee, and said "If you continue your report, it would be appreciated."

"Certainly, Prime," Bumblebee replied. "When I sang, it became clear that the AllSpark was inside Sam, in some way, but it was weak, it was dying, it was not designed to...reside inside an organic being," Bumblebee said. "It spoke to me, and said it could live in a body like mine, but it feared still being fought over, so instead of asking for a body, or inhabiting mine until a new one could be built, it preferred to die in an attempt to stop the war becoming more...protracted, or worse than it already was. It said there are, somewhere, other femmes about, but that as our race is so scattered, and the femmes so few, that they might never reach us. So it asked if it could turn me into a femme with the last of it's energy, as a...failsafe for our race in its absence, and, well, I accepted," Bumblebee said. "Then it began changing me, but I imagine Ratchet can probably give you more input as to what it looked like to anybody observing."

"Not that much more input," Ratchet said. "Sam and Bumblebee became encapsulated in a globe of AllSpark light that was impervious to optical or any other sensors. When it faded, after about a minute, well, Sam was unchanged, and Bumblebee was as you see her now."

"I am going to inform all the other mechs in the Base, and I will ask Major Lennox to brief the humans," Optimus said to Bumblebee. "I shall tell the mechs that unless you ask them to do otherwise, they are not to treat you any differently because of your new gender. Although you accepted the change, it was sudden, and you will need time to adjust. I think it best if you do not have to worry about your comrades reacting to you in what might be an unwelcome or unexpected manner as a result. I am no exception, Bumblebee, if you still need to speak to me or come to me for any reason, I will not treat you any different because you are a femme."

Optimus could see from Bumblebee's optics that he had said the right thing: the new femme's earlier concern had been over the possible changed dynamic between the Prime and herself. As Bumblebee had lost his Creator or Creators when very young, when the Autobots had found him, Optimus had almost unconsciously taken on that Creator-figure role in Bumblebee's life. Although now technically adult, Bumblebee still had a relatively youngster's insecurities and needs, including a Creator figure cum-role-model, and that was Optimus, although the Prime had been glad to note that Bumblebee had also looking to Ironhide for some types of guidance.

Optimus was hopeful that maybe one day Bumblebee might feel comfortable enough to create a sparkling with and for him, but if that happened, it would not be any time soon. Right now, Bumblebee needed a Creator, not a lover.

"Thanks, Optimus, I appreciate that," Bumblebee said, as she put Sam down on Ratchet's work table before crossing to Optimus and throwing her arms around him much as she had when she was a much younger mech. Optimus closed his arms around the scout, giving her a reassuring, comforting hug back, grateful that the young femme still trusted him to continue in his Creator-Guardian role.

He determined, that no matter what it took, Bumblebee should have the time she needed to adjust, even if it took orns, vorns, or even longer than that.


	3. Chapter 3

For The Race: Queen Bee.

Chapter Three.

"Look, Optimus, Ratchet, Prowl, I said I would like to stay with the boy, and I still want to do that. There should be no reason for me to enter robot form while at the Witwicky household, and even the Decepticons are likely to think Sam asked me to scan a sportier car," Bumblebee said to the three 'named 'bots a day or so later, as they met in Prowl's office.

"Okay, I get that, and I suppose we can't keep you in-Base at all times, but what I do ask is that you visit Ironhide first for a few extra defences," Prowl suggested.

"Aren't my current weapons enough?" Bumblebee asked, and in answer, Prowl moved in close to Bumblebee, threw himself at her, and began wrestling with her.

"Fight like your Spark is in peril, Autobot!" he snarled, and for a moment even Sam was startled at how like Barricade Prowl sounded. Optimus and Ratchet, though, didn't look at all alarmed or even surprised, just stepped back, although Ratchet scooped Sam up out of potential harm's way as be did so.

Bumblebee indeed increased her struggles, but it wasn't long before Prowl had Bumblebee pinned to the ground. He pinned her there for a few seconds longer to make his point before rolling off Bumblebee onto his feet, and then offering Bumblebee a hand up.

"To answer your original question, Bumblebee, no, your current weapons are not enough, because as a minibot, most of your weapons are ranged. This means that you have no hand-to-hand weapons to use if someone gets too close. The Decepticons could, as I just did, as Barricade, trained in melee combat might, get close enough that you need a few extra tricks up your armour, as a last resort," Prowl stated, in his own voice, much to Sam's relief. "If anybody knows something you could add to your arsenal to give you close range weaponry without losing speed, it's Ironhide." Optimus and Ratchet both added their support to Prowl's suggestion, as Ratchet placed Sam on top of the tactical officer's desk.

"I guess so, but I was always told my value was as a ranged fighter, and there were other mechs that were more sorted to melee fights," Bumblebee explained.

"Which is why Ironhide's additions will be small, light, and weapons of last resort," Prowl explained, as he turned Bumblebee in the direction of Ironhide's armoury and gave her a gentle shove in the right direction. "Now go get what he suggests, and then came me back to me, and then we can talk about going back outside the Base. Optimus, Ratchet, if you want me, I'll be in the rec-room," he said.

Bumblebee took one look at the scowl on Prowl's face, and headed towards Ironhide's armoury.

ooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo

"Okay, it didn't take long, or require being reset, but it wasn't meant to. These are weapons of last resort," Ironhide said as Bumblebee examined her new spiked knuckles, and looked in vain for a difference in her chest plates. "You only use these if you're backed into a corner and need time to run, because that's all these will give you. Long enough to get far away enough to either be safe, or be able to bring your bigger, and more powerful weaponry, to bear."

"Okay, Ironhide, thanks," Bumblebee said.

"Now, we need to test them," Ironhide said. "Thump me with your knuckles as if you mean it, and then count out loud."

"Ironhide? Thump you with them?" Bumblebee asked.

"Sure, best test for them, I have more armour for my size than most 'bots my size, or 'Cons for that matter. See how long I stay down, then you'll know, if it comes to it, how long you have at minimum against almost anyone else of my size."

"Makes sense," Bumblebee said, and gathered her fists in close to her chest as Ironhide had taught.

"Good, that's their point of interest, they'll think you're trying to defend, and that's when their guard is likely to drop," Ironhide's voice said, and then he reached his arms over Bumblebee's as if to grab her wrists. As taught, Bumblebee punched, one fist under and the other over. Ironhide caught the fist going over, but the other, knuckles fully exposed, hit the centre of Ironhide's chest plates, and there was a crackle before Ironhide collapsed in front of the smaller 'bot.

Bumblebee bent to check on Ironhide, but the bigger 'bot said "Count. Time this."

Sam, standing nearby, had already set off his watch timer, and Bumblebee began counting out loud at second long intervals. She reached 20 before Ironhide was able to raise his hand and arm, and 38 before Ironhide succeeded in his attempts to push himself upright, and back onto his feet, swaying alarmingly as he did so.

"Impressive stuff," Sam said, as Bumblebee carefully moved him back in case the Weapons Specialist overbalanced.

"You don't hang around counting if you use it for real, Bumblebee, you run as fast as your legs will take you, and you com for help," Ironhide told him. "If there is no help close, at least get far enough away to use your main weapons to defend yourself until help arrives, or get away, and remember, although bigger 'bots fall harder, they also recover a little faster. And don't forget to check above for danger!"

"Okay," Bumblebee said, still a bit startled by the effect the knuckle spikes had had on Ironhide. "I've seen you take bigger hits from Decepticons, and stay standing," she said in awe.

"They don't use knuckle spikes, because it's only rarely they get that close," he pointed out, and Bumblebee had to admit it was true, Ironhide could near enough slag a Decepticon at 100 metres with his cannons.

"Now, give me a short time to recover from this, and then you can try your electro-magnetic pulse generator, - EMP generator for short. Be warned, it'll more likely knock me out for longer."

"No need, Ironhide, if it's more powerful than the knuckles, it'll probably be long enough to do the same as you advised with the knuckles, I shouldn't need to test it," Bumblebee said. To both her and Sam's surprise, Ironhide nodded.

"Yes, I agree, that's the same model I put in for Chromia, and I know that causes unconsciousness for at least two breems, and unsteadiness and impairment for about a joor," he said. "It's also useful to know that it has a range of about a metre, the opponent or opponents don't need to be actually touching you to be affected." He paused, and made sure he had the new femme's attention before continuing.

"But the other thing you need to remember, Bumblebee, is that the EMP generator is a one-shot device in a battle, you can't use it twice in quick succession, as it needs to charge after each use, which takes half a joor. If you use it, like the knuckles, your next action is to run and put distance between you and them, and yell for help." He paused, making sure Bumblebee understood. "Well, what I've put in should give you a fighting chance without any loss of speed, you can go back to Prowl and tell him that I've made you as ready as you'll ever be."

Bumblebee thanked Ironhide, who told her she was welcome, and reminded her that if she needed help to call for it, and if it was needed, he would respond. Bumblebee picked up Sam and, as requested, headed back to Prowl's office, comming Prowl to let him know they were en route to see him.

When they got there, they didn't have long to wait. Bumblebee put Sam up onto Prowl's desk, and then waited for Prowl to come in.

When he did, Prowl surprised both the human and the scout by springing at Bumblebee before he said anything, and tried to bear her down to the floor. Bumblebee froze for just a moment, but then activated the only untested piece of equipment - the EMP device.

Prowl cried out as he arched, and then fell off Bumblebee twitching. The young Autobot scout pushed the tactical officer off herself, checked him, and then called Ratchet in panic. As the medic came in, he said "What happened? Slowly, Bumblebee, just explain the sequence of events."

"Prowl sent me to Ironhide to get some melee weapons that would give me a chance to get away if I were grabbed. Ironhide installed electro knuckles and an EMP device, and sent us back to Prowl. I came back and let him know we were coming here, but when he came in, he jumped me. I sort of panicked, but then remembered the EMP device and I activated it before I thought, and now, I can't wake him!" Bumblebee said in distress.

Ratchet, who had been scanning the prone mech, turned his scanning beam off and turned towards Bumblebee.

"He was testing you, Bumblebee, and I'd say that you've passed. If he has processor ache when he recovers, it's his own fault. Don't worry, 'Bee, he was probably expecting you to just use the knuckles, but he'll be awake in a human hour or so." Ratchet stooped and picked Prowl up, slinging him over his shoulder as if the tactical officer weighed nothing at all. "I'll take him to the medical bay just to make sure, but he'll be okay in general, and as for the unfortunate side effects, he's only got himself to blame. Why don't you head to the rec-room and get yourself an energon while he recovers?" With that, Ratchet turned and exited the office with Prowl hanging limply over one shoulder.

"I guess I should," Bumblebee said. "I'll have to go at some point, maybe, as you humans say, the sooner, the better." Putting her hands out to Sam, she waited for him to climb in, before cradling the human close to her chest, and heading out of the security office and heading for the recreation room.

When he walked in, the usual hubbub inside quieted as every optic turned to look at her, until Optimus, who was there on one of his own rare visits, raised his arm and waved them over. Bumblebee moved over, put Sam down on a platform that was there for humans, with drink and food dispensers, and went over to where Optimus was holding out a cube of energon.

"Have you visited Ironhide, as Prowl suggested?" Optimus asked, as Bumblebee gratefully took the cube and took a drink from it. Rather than explain, Bumblebee sent Optimus her memories of the fight, and Optimus chuckled at the visuals.

"Well, it seems that Prowl underestimated your determination to defend yourself. He forgets you have been fighting Decepticons long enough to know to fight back, be you mech or femme, and I believe he has forgotten, too, that our femmes were feared by the Decepticons back on Cybertron. They hunted down Decepticons, and fought to foil their plans by subterfuge worthy of their foes."

Optimus placed one large hand lightly on Bumblebee's back, steering her lightly towards the seating area, and as they approached, Cliffjumper, Hound, and Mirage vacated the sofa for them. Before Bumblebee could sit down, Cliffjumper approached and said "You owe me a pool rematch." Bumblebee handed her cube back to Prime, and let Cliffjumper lead her to the Autobot-sized pool table, hold out two oversized cues, and say to her "Choose your weapon."

The two chose the colour of balls that matched their own hide colours, and Sam cheered Bumblebee on. She lost one game, but then won the other, and Prowl called Bumblebee on com during the third. Bumblebee was winning this one, but drawing it out, but at Prowl's com she quickly cleaned up the yellow balls on the table, followed by the black, took a bow, picked up Sam, bid everyone in the room goodbye, and headed for Prowl's office.

Prowl appeared unharmed by his brush with the EMP generator, nodding to Bumblebee as she entered Prowl's office.

"Prowl, I apologise for my rash use of the EMP device, I should have used the knuckles, I did not realise it would-" Bumblebee cut off as Prowl raised an imperious hand.

"Bumblebee, do not apologise for not holding back, because in a real attack, the Decepticons would not hold back themselves, and I expect you not to either. You showed me that you understand how deadly serious such a situation would be, and as such, I can no longer put forward any objection to your intention to stay with Sam as you have expressed you wish to."

"Prowl, are you doubting my commitment to the Autobot cause? I have fought beside you and others before, why are you suddenly doubting that I would be able or willing to fight just because I am now a femme?" She said, sounding hurt.

"No, Bumblebee, you confuse my motives," Prowl said. "I do not doubt your commitment because you are a femme, but with the AllSpark gone, it is possible and even likely that you will become a greater target, either to be kidnapped or destroyed. They may see you as a resource, either to obtain for themselves or to eliminate so that we don't have what they may see as an advantage. It was never my belief that your dedication to our cause would lessen any. It is more that the Decepticon's efforts to better or thwart us may increase, and as the likely target, you need to be more alert and aware of the risks." Prowl explained.

Bumblebee blinked. "I never thought of that," she admitted.

"Well, I advise you to keep it in the forefront of your mind from now on, and be ready to use what Ironhide has given you if the need arises," Prowl said.

Bumblebee nodded, determined that from now on she would.


	4. Chapter 4

For The Race - Queen Bee.

Chapter Four.

A/N: Not sure how often I'll be able to update after this, see my profile for a little more detail.

Six Weeks Later.

Sam and Miles disembarked from Bumblebee, and stood well back. Although Bumblebee had now been staying with Sam for over a month with no incident, she had not left the town. When Ironhide heard that Sam wanted to take Miles to the Lookout to see Bumblebee's new robot form, Ironhide felt The Lookout was too exposed to take foolish or thoughtless risks, and had decided to accompany them for safety's sake, and for his own peace of mind.

"Woah!" said Miles, as Bumblebee unfolded in front of him. Bumblebee, upon finding out what a close friendship Sam and Miles shared, had deliberately changed in front of Miles not long after the battle at Mission City. "You could get into trouble for telling him, bad trouble involving prison time, but I won't," he had said at the time. "Okay, Prime will probably not be happy and will tell me off, but now you don't have to keep double-checking what you say while around him, and thus will avoid slips of the tongue landing you in prison."

Even Lennox and Prime, when Bumblebee explained his logic, had agreed it was a good idea once they had calmed down, and once Miles had signed the Non-Disclosure Agreement, the matter was dropped by humans and Cybertronians alike. Although, Bumblebee reflected, he had still gotten the expected dressing-down from Prime.

"I can still tell you're the same robot Sam introduced me to a few months ago, but woah, you're a girl robot now?" Miles asked the yellow scout.

"If I understand your vernacular, then yes, I am now a female, or 'femme' 'bot, as opposed to the male robot I was when we first met, but the only real difference is in the capabilities of my Spark, and some slight alterations in the shape of my body," Bumblebee stated to the human.

"Why did this happen? Did you, like a human transsexual, feel like a female trapped in a male body?" Miles asked.

"No, Miles, I was happy being a mech, but I did not object to being transformed into a femme. The AllSpark asked me if I would take on the gender, and the associated responsibility, of being a femme, and I trust the AllSpark in such matters," Bumblebee explained. Plus, male and female Cybertronians do not have the same gender roles, or taboos, as humans."

"They're more laid back about sex, or, as they call it, interface," Sam said, knowing this because the subject had come up one day, and he and 'Bee, once Sam had overcome his embarrassment, had discussed it at length. "They have no diseases, and did not use it to reproduce, only for strengthening friendships, and for pleasure."

"If they didn't use it to reproduce, I guess there's no incest either, and you said femmes were rare, so homosexuality is normal?" Miles asked, who had known the basics about the AllSpark, and had worked the rest out.

"There is no equivalent word in Cybertronian," Bumblebee said. "We talk about mech-mech partnerships, mech-femme partnerships, and femme-femme partnerships, but don't have specific terms for each of these beyond that."

"Was that because it was normal, or because it was not talked about?" Miles asked.

"A bit of both, I'd say," Bumblebee replied. "It was not talked about, or not in the way humans might, because it was pretty normal. Interface is interface, and you did it with whom you wanted to, their gender was irrelevant. It might be seen as a minor scandal if one was an Autobot and the other a Decepticon, maybe, but not because they were both the same, or different, genders."

"Meaning," Ironhide said, pausing to change into robot form himself, "that nobody would blink if, say, Ratchet and I decided to become interface partners, but would be shocked to the same degree if I went with Starscream, or 'Bee went with, say, Barricade."

"Which, I must say, I have no desire to do," Bumblebee said.

Ironhide's transformation did not startle Miles in the least: once Bumblebee had shown himself, it was felt to be in Miles' best interest to get him used to the bigger 'bots, seeing as he'd thought Bumblebee, currently the shortest 'bot on Earth, was big. His first reaction upon seeing Ironhide and Optimus had been comical to those watching, but not too embarrassing for Miles. Yes, he'd gone white, backed off and fallen over, but he hadn't soiled himself in any way. Once the initial shock had worn off, he'd been fine with them.

"Bumblebee, back into alt, I see Seekers in the sky," Ironhide suddenly said. Bumblebee was about to do just that when, with a bang of displaced air Skywarp appeared above them, and did a double take. He dropped down for a closer look as Bumblebee, fearing being at a disadvantage while changing to alt, chose to stay in her robot mode for now, backed off, and charged her cannon instead.

"Get lost!" roared Ironhide, discharging his cannon next to Skywarp, close enough to make the Seeker wobble, but not so close as to actually harm him. "Next time, I will be aiming for your wings, so take that as a warning and slag off! Bumblebee is under my protection, so I advise you to leave now, and tell your wing brothers to stay away!"

"I'm going, but this is not the end of this matter," Skywarp said, before vanishing as swiftly and noisily as he had appeared.

Ironhide stood on guard with his cannons at the ready as Sam and Miles continued to talk, Sam explaining things to Miles as quickly as possible. The Seekers continued buzzing about, and although they kept out of Ironhide's weapons range, Ironhide shot warning shots at them to encourage them to stay out of range.

Ironhide was still angry that they kept comming him - where they got his com code from he didn't know - asking to talk to him and Bumblebee, asking how Bumblebee was now a femme, which told the Weapons Specialist that not only had Skywarp recognised Bumblebee despite the changes to her form, but that he had obviously not kept his vocal processor shut, and had told his wing brothers all he knew.

Ironhide did not realise until too late the significance of the Seekers all clinging to each other. When they clustered together in the sky, he wondered if they had decided to give up and to interface, and had decided now might be a good time to head back to the Autobot Base. He had turned to address Bumblebee and the two humans, and was looking at them as he did so, so did not see the clustered Seekers high in the air disappear.

He turned at the sound of displaced air, in time to see the three Seekers, now much lower, fly apart and heading in three different directions. He belatedly realised that one of them, Skywarp to be exact, was heading directly towards him. The Seeker had his arms stretched ahead of him, his arm blasters pointing at Ironhide's head.

Ironhide raised his cannons to fire, but Skywarp reached Ironhide first, grabbed his cannon with one hand, swung around him and grabbed his head with the other arm and hand, before disappearing again, this time taking Ironhide with him.

Bumblebee saw Starscream coming at her, and pointed her cannon towards him, taking aim, only realising Thundercracker was approaching her from the back when Sam shouted in warning. That was when Bumblebee felt the Seeker put his own arms under hers, and reach up to hold her shoulders, and execute a sharp upwards manoeuvre that left Bumblebee dangling in midair. Bumblebee didn't hesitate, grabbing one of the arms around her and pulling it away with a twisting movement which temporarily left her held by just one arm. Grabbing the hand attached to that other arm, Bumblebee pulled at that one too, succeeding in pulling it loose, so she was hanging from the Seeker's arms, one hand around one wrist, and the other hand in the Seeker's other hand, fingers interlaced as Thundercracker fought to keep his grip.

"Are you suicidal?" Thundercracker screeched.

"I can survive a drop from this height," Bumblebee replied as she released Thundercracker's wrist and balled her free hand into a fist. She then punched Thundercracker on the inside of his elbow with her knuckle spikes as hard as she could.

The electric crackle was hardly audible over the agonised screech Thundercracker made, his hand releasing Bumblebee's abruptly. Bumblebee, as planned, found herself in freefall, and looked around for buildings or trees that she might use to arrest her descent. She could, as she had told Thundercracker, survive such a fall, but if she could limit the damage caused, all the better.

She was falling head first, and saw both trees and buildings, but also Starscream, who had been following Thundercracker up, and was closer. To her surprise, Starscream did not reach for her immediately, but she realised he was just being cautious a moment later. She felt him grab her by her ankles before flying straight up, but holding her out in front, his arms straight, so she could not use her knuckles on him. She did try, swinging herself back and forth like a pendulum, but although she made Starscream's flight wobble, she was unable to reach him. Of course, she still had one weapon left in her arsenal, and all she needed was for the mech to be either very close to her, or to be touching her somewhere. Even with Starscream holding her ankles, she could still use this against him.

Without any hesitation, she activated her electromagnetic pulse generator.

The reaction was immediate. Starscream released her ankles and began to fall, but so did she, headfirst again, and this time she was much higher up. As she dropped she looked around below at the swiftly approaching ground, looking for buildings or trees, or even an empty field, hopefully with soft soil, to break her fall. She could see mainly empty ground, rocks, dirt and roads, even saw whom she assumed was Ironhide, rushing back from wherever Skywarp had obviously dumped him off, and Sam and miles,both of whom were looking up. However, there were few opportunities to break her fall. She saw Thundercracker, still wobbling after the whack she had given him, seeming to approach but then move to the side; it wasn't her he went to catch, it was his wing brother.

She spread out her arms and legs, hoping the drag and friction would slow her velocity, but suspected that she would be very badly fragged upon landing. She could just imagine Ratchet's complaints, "You've barely had this body for sixteen joors, and you've managed to trash it already?" If she survived this, she'd be confined to Base forever, she guessed resentfully.

As the ground got ever closer, she shuttered her optics and waited for the inevitable.

She was surprised by a bang, and then felt hands on her ankles again, and at his she opened her optics. She could see Thundercracker below her, holding Starscream, but he appeared to be having trouble, either from Starscream's dead weight, or from the after effects of her punch, or maybe both. She flinched as there was the sound of Ironhide's cannon blast, which destabilised the pair below, but that was all that Bumblebee saw as her vision blurred, and she felt herself swung by the ankles upwards and then released. She flew up into the air and then began falling again, back-first, doorwings working futilely as if they were functional wings.

It was at times like this that Bumblebee wished her jet pack was in-built, and she thought that perhaps it could be another modification she'd suggest if she survived this.

Then, once again her descent stopped as she was grabbed, this time around the chest and arms. She thought of twisting her hands to use her knuckles on her assailant's legs as she began to ascend again, but then a dizzying sensation assailed her, and her surroundings suddenly changed.

The Seeker had used the ability that had gained him his name, and warped her elsewhere.

ooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo

Ironhide was furious at being so easily tricked and spirited away, and ignored every speed limit as he headed back towards the Lookout, even skipping the roads where he could, having an off-road alt had its advantages. He could see the Seekers trying to take Bumblebee, saw Thundercracker release her as she punched, and then Starscream take over, catching her and holding her away from him so she couldn't use the knuckles. Then Ironhide saw the Seeker suddenly release her and drop out of the sky himself. That could only be the effect of the EMP device. He felt a surge of pride in the brave little mech-turned-femme, even as his concern for her grew as he saw her fall. He wondered if he could blast the earth around where she would fall to loosen it so she would have a softer landing.

He saw Thundercracker fly up to Starscream, and begin to slow his plummet, and he angrily fired so close to them that they were knocked sideways by the shock wave of the full-strength cannon blast. It was only then that he noticed that Skywarp has reappeared and caught Bumblebee by the ankles, and he was actually thankful that one of the Seekers had thought to lessen the danger to Bumblebee that they had put her in. Then he saw Skywarp swing her by the ankles and throw her into the air. He let out a growl of rage, heading now for the two Seekers who had just landed, partway down the Lookout.

He saw Skywarp disappear, and reappear, catching Bumblebee around the arms and torso this time, and angling up. Then with the usual crack of displaced air, the Seeker and the little yellow femme he held disappeared.

Ironhide snarled in fury, transforming as he advanced towards where Thundercracker knelt by the unconscious Starscream, and as he advanced, Ironhide began powering up his cannons.

They had been warned, and the time for warnings was over.


	5. Chapter 5

For The Race: Queen Bee.

Chapter Five.

Thundercracker looked up as the sun was blotted out by a shadow, and turned his head around to see what was happening, only to see Ironhide standing over them, his cannons whirring towards full charge, and both pointing at the unconscious Starscream's chest. Fear shadowed the blue Seeker's optics, and he leaned over Starscream, partially occluding Ironhide's aim.

"He's unconscious! You would kill him when he's this defenceless?" Thundercracker objected, his deep voice going unusually high with nerves.

"Don't tempt me!" Ironhide snarled, locking optics with Thundercracker, the look he gave him almost making the blue Seeker recoil. "You are staying here. If you try to escape I will shoot him, and that's not a threat, but a promise!" Thundercracker could see from the look in Ironhide's optics that the Autobot weapons specialist meant every word. He let himself slump forward over his wing brother's chest and raised his arms over his head, crossing his wrists.

"Good, you're surrendering, I was going to take you as our prisoners anyway, but this makes it easier," Ironhide said. "You Decepticons may have been picky with what parts of the Treaty of Iacon you chose to sign, but fortunately for you, we Autobots signed it all. Once we have taken you in, you need not fear mistreatment. I have called Optimus and Ratchet, and they will be bringing help. You will stay there until they arrive." Although his voice was not raised, Thundercracker could still hear the barely-contained anger in Ironhide's voice.

As the humans arrived and saw Ironhide's aggressive posture, they wisely kept their distance, looking at each other, but not talking. The tense atmosphere was broken when Optimus, towing an oversized trailer bed, Ratchet, and Sideswipe turned up. Thundercracker watched them convert and said "Optimus Prime, I surrender, and surrender for Starscream on his behalf. Please, will you help Starscream, and call him off?" The Seeker jerked his head at Ironhide.

"Ironhide, lower your weapons. We will deal with them from here on," Optimus said. As Ironhide stepped back and dropped his cannons, Optimus moved over, with Ratchet and Sideswipe, and gently touched Thundercracker's shoulder.

"We need to lift Starscream onto the trailer, Ratchet says he'll remain unconscious for another breem or two, and not be fully functional for a couple of joors. He certainly won't be able to stand or fly for a while." Thundercracker looked confused for a few moments, then recovered himself and sat back up, freeing up Starscream's prone form, which Optimus and Ratchet quickly picked up and carefully placed on Optimus' big trailer bed. Ratchet used a tarpaulin and straps to both conceal and secure Starscream, and then looked at Ironhide with a glower.

"Optimus told you to lower your weapons, Ironhide. Turn your cannons off, you're scaring the humans!"

"What if Thundercracker tries to escape, or Skywarp turns up?" Ironhide asked.

"I won't try to escape, I promise, and Skywarp will wait for us and make sure Bumblebee is okay," Thundercracker said.

"Bumblebee will not be mistreated?" Optimus asked.

"Of course not, do you think we are sparkless monsters?" Thundercracker asked.

Ironhide muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'yes', but Optimus ignored him.

"Ironhide, keep your cannons online but power them down to low. Thundercracker, on the way to our Base you will change into your disguise form and carry Sideswipe on your top surface to be certain you don't try any detours, and we will wait for Starscream to awaken before we set off so we can tell him what is going on." The last thing Optimus wanted was a panicking Starscream while driving along the highway. "I will inform the military that we have the situation in hand." Optimus reflected that he did not want the humans turning up and potentially turning a manageable situation into an unnecessary conflict any more than he wanted a panicked Seeker on his trailer.

Thundercracker stayed in robot form until Starscream began to rouse, reassuring him and letting him know what was happening before converting into his F-22 form. Sideswipe lightly jumped on top of Thundercracker's dorsal surface, hanging on carefully as the Seeker took off. Ratchet made sure the tarpaulin and the other Seeker beneath it were secure before Optimus converted back to truck form, and Ratchet coupled the flat bed to the right place on Optimus' alt mode. Then once Optimus was lined up on the road, Ironhide and Ratchet both converted, Ratchet driving in front of Optimus, and Ironhide bringing up the rear, scanning the surrounding area and the sky constantly as they headed back to their Base.

They were almost halfway to the Base when Bumblebee's SOS came through. They considered turning around and going to his rescue, but reluctantly concluded they needed to drop off Starscream and Thundercracker first. Pinpointing the origin of the signal and marking it on a mental map, Optimus promised himself that they would go to the young scout's aid as soon as was practicable.

He just hoped that they would not be too late to keep their newest femme safe.

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As Skywarp dropped down a couple of inches, Bumblebee felt her feet touch the ground, and as Skywarp released her, she swayed but stayed upright as her gyros kicked in. She turned around to see Skywarp backing away from her with his hands up.

"I mean you no harm, we just wanted to talk, but even though we asked Ironhide, he refused to even consider us coming down, or visiting for a chance to talk, so this is the only thing we could think of to do!"

"What? Kidnap me?" Bumblebee said, raising her armour, dropping her battle mask, charging up her arm cannon, and deploying her shoulder launchers as she backed up further. Skywarp's optics flashed in alarm as he noticed the weapons deployment. Belatedly, Bumblebee remembered Ironhide's instructions, and sent out an SOS com to any Autobots who could hear it.

"When our requests to talk in a civilised fashion were refused, yes," Skywarp said. "I will return you once I have spoken to you, but I request that you power down before you blow us both up. This space is too enclosed for either of us to deploy powerful weapons without damaging ourselves and each other in the process."

Bumblebee took a quick glance at her surroundings, and took in Skywarp's lack of armed response to her own weapons deployment, and saw the sense in what the black and purple Seeker was saying. Although she kept her armour raised and her battle mask down, she put away the shoulder launchers, and powered her cannon down, changing the cannon back into an arm and hand.

It was at this point that Bumblebee saw Skywarp's optics dilate slightly, and the Seeker's mouth open, about to speak. This was the only warning Bumblebee got as she was tackled from behind. She pulled her arms up as another pair of metal arms attempted to pin them to her side.

She felt anger at Skywarp's further duplicity, coupled with anger at herself, for trusting the word of a Decepticon. She found her new and more streamlined femme form had it's advantages as she struggled around to face her opponent, thankful that he had not succeeded in his attempt to trap her arms against her own body.

She swung spiked fists, hearing the electrical energy pop and sizzle, for Ironhide had cautioned her that the EMP device needed recharging, but had not said the same about the electro-knuckle spikes. As they impacted on black and white armour, Barricade yelled in surprise and pain, pulling back a little. Bumblebee used the space to jack her knees up between them, and was glad she had not lowered her battle mask as she headbutted Barricade's face as hard as she could. He loosened his grip a little more, and she brought her legs up further, catching the foot tips under his knee plating.

She hit the frontliner with her spiky electric knuckles again, and at the same time she kicked her legs out straight as hard as she could.

Barricade was obviously taken by surprise as the triple assault succeeded, and he went flying back, landing face-up and skidding slightly on the floor. Bumblebee used the momentum from flexing her legs to rock back and then forwards, rolling to a standing position, as Barricade, too, stood again, beginning to deploy his whirling saw blade. Bumblebee tensed, getting ready to jump aside, considering deploying her cannon to even things up, even if it was dangerous to all inside, maybe she could bluff-

Two bangs of displaced air, one immediately after the other, distracted both opponents, as did the appearance of Skywarp between the two combatants, his arms spread as if to hold them apart.

"Stop it!" He cried. "Barricade, either stand down or leave, Bumblebee has been brought here to talk, maybe if you check with me first before you take unilateral action, you wouldn't need to consider a visit to the medbay."

"It's not that bad, and why should I obey the likes of you?" Barricade said. Skywarp flexed his own hands, raising his sharp knuckle spines and finger points.

"I can make it that bad, and more, if you don't obey, Barricade," Skywarp replied. "Don't push me into acting on my words."

For a moment, Bumblebee thought Barricade would indeed attack Skywarp to try and get to her as the two Decepticons locked optics in a battle of wills, but Barricade must have decided it wasn't worth the risk of getting injured. He suddenly dropped his gaze and, without a word, turned to stalk out of the hangar.

Once the frontliner had gone, Skywarp untensed, seeming to sag before he relaxed his armour and stood aside. He turned to look at Bumblebee before affording her a small but respectful bow.

"I was actually scared he was going to call me on that. I would, of course, have responded as promised, but it would be a waste of time, effort, and energon. Now, as I said, I would simply like to talk."

The bow, although brief and fairly shallow, was a motion that left the Seeker momentarily vulnerable, and it was this more than anything else that convinced Bumblebee that Skywarp meant what he had said.

"Then we will talk. What did you want to speak about?" Bumblebee said cautiously, again not lowering her armour or her battle mask. Skywarp gave her an incredulous look, but nodded and indicated Bumblebee.

"You have changed form, and by the looks of things, gender, too. Unless you asked Ratchet to remodel you into that new form, the only thing I can think of that might account for such a change is the AllSpark. However, as far as we know, the AllSpark was destroyed in Mission City. Is there some other possibility, or are the Autobots once again selfishly keeping knowledge and power from others who have the right to know and have access to it?"

"This was not exactly planned, and what remained of the AllSpark is suspected to have finally expired, but not before doing this to me." Bumblebee briefly showed Skywarp via hologram what had happened, and began to explain as she did so.

"It seemed that, unbeknownst to any of us, the energy of the AllSpark was hiding itself inside Sam..." She began.

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The Seekers were quickly transferred to the Medbay in the Autobot Base, and Ratchet checked them over and repaired any obvious damage he found, grousing the whole time about the constant and never-ending run of repairs the Autobot-Decepticon conflict left him fixing up. Neither Seeker felt like baiting or sassing Ratchet, especially considering the mood of Ironhide who stood nearby with his cannons still out. The risk of well-aimed wrenches was bad enough, they both felt, but risking the wrath of an already-riled well-armed mech was, they decided between short comms to each other, bordering on the suicidally insane. When Ratchet disabled their communications a short time later, they were not sure if he had overheard their comms, or if it was just a coincidence

When Ratchet declared them fixed to the best of his ability, Optimus and Ironhide accompanied the pair to the largest room of three that Prowl had designated for detention. Optimus reflected that the Twins themselves had done some time in there for minor but annoying infractions, and wondered if the two would like a turn on the other side of the strong force fields around the room, as guards. He commed Hound and Mirage, and told them to meet him at the gate, planning to head out to aid and hopefully rescue Bumblebee. The SOS had stopped a short time ago, and he hoped it was due to a lack of need rather than Decepticon interference.

They had just put the two Seekers inside, given them a cube of energon each, and activated the force-fields, when Cliffjumper, manning communications and sensors, said "Incoming Seeker, sir, and I think he's carrying Bumblebee."

"I'm on my way," he said. "Ironhide, call Sideswipe and Sunstreaker to aid you, we may need to bring these two out soon." Ironhide nodded, comming the pair as requested and taking the opportunity to fix the two Seekers inside, who had begun to smile, with a quelling glare.

"You are not off the hook by any means," he told them. "Skywarp might also find himself joining you in here." The two stopped smiling, and Ironhide turned his back to them, satisfied.

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When Skywarp landed, he carefully and slowly put Bumblebee down, knowing the area was probably well provided with cameras the Autobots were likely to be watching, even if he couldn't see them. He and Bumblebee walked slowly forwards, and then he stopped, weapons down and armour flat, and allowed Bumblebee to advance to the gate. Bumblebee held a short conversation with the gate-mech, and then the yellow scout waved the purple Seeker forwards, before proceeding into the Base himself.

Skywarp was scanned, and then allowed in, as three Autobots he recognised as Hound, Prowl, and Mirage advanced on him, armour up and weapons ready. He began to wonder if what Bumblebee had told him was not accurate, or even deliberate misinformation, and was about to raise his armour and make a standing take-off to try and save his hide when Prowl spoke.

"Decepticon Skywarp, we request that you accompany us to see your wing brothers. When we are satisfied that Bumblebee is unharmed, you will all be released and bought to a meeting room. Please follow me."

As the other two 'bots moved to flank him, Prowl spoke again.

"Do not fear our weapons, they are merely a precaution. We will not fire on anyone who has their weapons down and armour not deployed, we do not fire on those not ready to defend themselves." He paused, and then spoke again.

"Bumblebee has informed us that you have come here, powered down and not battle ready, because you wish to talk."


End file.
